Chapter Text
Marriage. It was always an abstract concept for Kara Zor-El. She had always known that it was expected of her. From the moment her planet exploded, she knew that she her dreams of finding a match her parents might approve of rather than an arranged marriage were impossible. Her father and Aunt had found a way to lift part of Argos City like a spaceship and the blast pushed them towards what they hoped would be their new home—Earth.
It was supposed to be an easy alliance. They’d trade technology and culture for a room to live on the planet. From their research, the humans had large unused tracts of desert that would serve them well. The sun would make them stronger and their technology could make the space habitable. Extending the dome around the city would be all they needed to make a space for themselves.
From a planet of more than a billion, they were the last 100,000 of their race. Travel was slower than they had hoped. What should have been a short journey took over a decade of darkness. The wonders of space were few and far between. Most of the time it was an inky blackness that threatened to consume them. Time moved in a strange way like everything was happening slower than it should be.
Marriages had to wait as resources were scarce and Kara was grateful for the delay. They arrived on Earth and many of them kissed the sandy ground, happy to see the sun and be filled with it’s warmth. It was colder than Rao who had always watched over them. The bright yellow harsh compared to the soft red they were used to, but it was home.
The first six months were peaceful as they rebuilt their homes and acclimated to their new planet. They helped the humans solve some of their issues with food production and often flew to aid them during natural disasters or other disputes. Kara’s parents entered into negotiations with the parents of a boy she’d known at school for her hand. She’d always particularly disliked him and said as much. It wasn’t for her to decide and her parents dressed her down thoroughly. Her responsibility was to her people now. She HAD to do what was best for them and their species. The codex had been rebuilt and made better and that was the way forward.
Before the negotiations could be finalized, the attack began. Russia bombarded them, dropping bombs on the city via strange robotic warriors that could explode with clouds of green. Kara’s father was lost in the blasts along with 25 percent of their population. Her mother called for war and her Aunt took control of the Kryptonian forces. It became clear that the Russians had been aided by many of the world’s powers. The only way to be safe was to make sure the humans would never be in a position to hurt them like that ever again.
It was a long war, but a lot bloodier on the human’s side than on theirs. The boy her parents had wanted her to wed had been among those killed. She felt guilty that she had been relieved. The war could be called a decisive victory except on the day they declared it, one last bomb went off. It was a biological weapon. It had been meant to kill the Kryptonians, but their ability to regenerate was greater than the humans had predicted. There was only one small problem—the Kryptonians had been rendered completely sterile.
Their DNA had been shifted to the point that even their birth matrices couldn’t overcome it. Their scientists worked around the clock and there was only one solution to stabilize the kryptonian DNA—hybridity. The codex would select humans for each of the remaining Kryptonians to ‘marry’. Concubines had been discussed but sex outside of marriage was forbidden by Rao and children conceived that way could not receive his blessing, so they changed what marriage was. Instead of two souls joining in this life and into the next, it was a Kryptonian getting a human and impregnating her as much as was needed. An aid was created for women to be able to participate as well. It wasn’t a partnership; it was a breeding program.
Kara was the first to be married under the program. Her mother was in charge of the City so it fell to her symbolically to be the first and to lead their people to their new destiny. Many were looking forward to taking their anger for the war out on the humans in such a way, but Kara wasn’t one of them. The happy wedding day that she’d dreamed of as a little girl was instead a small ceremony broadcast across the planet.
Her new wife was clearly not happy to be getting married and spent the entire ceremony glaring at Kara with her chin raised. They stood on the jewels of truth and honor. Kara bit the inside of her cheek as the farce carried on around her. She chose to study the woman glaring at her instead of listening to the words being said.
Catherine Grant stood before her. Her bride was a bit older than she was—a decade of difference maybe. She wasn’t sure if her wife’s beauty was a curse or a relief. Her hair was golden and hung in loose curls the bottom of them almost touching her shoulder. She was shorter than Kara, but her presence made it seem like she stood taller than anyone else in the room. It was a departure from what she’d been allowed to see of humans before.
The officiant began the official vow section, “In the name of truth and honor I declare the marriage vows binding upon you! From this day forward, throughout all time and space,even unto eternity…”
Kara stood still as her future was decided for her. Neither of them were given the chance to accept or decline the vows. Bracelets were placed on their wrists in a combination of red, blue and yellow—the colors of the house of El. It’s weight wouldn’t be more than a feather but it pulled her arm down like a lead weight.
“Made wives this day–and for all days hence. May the countenance of Rao ever shine on you,” was said to finish the affair. There was no kiss.
Kara started to move towards her wife, but was pulled away by her mother, “Kara, a few words.”
Kara started to object and gesture at the woman she’d just been bound to, but Alura shook her head. “They’re taking her to be prepared for you. It’s best to give them time.”
“Al—right.” Cat was already gone, most likely to the apartment that had been set aside for them in one of the taller towers.
Alura moved swiftly and with an assuredness that Kara could never quite invoke as much as she tried. They were alone in a small meeting room with a single window overlooking New Argos City. “This is important. While our lives are greatly extended by the Earth’s sun, I am far from being invulnerable. It will one day fall to you to lead our people and this is the first step.”
Kara nodded. She’d heard this a thousand times, but her mother remained convinced that it wasn’t sticking in her brain. Spending her time more concerned with her art than matters of state didn’t mean she was trying to be frivolous; it was just her way of coping with everything that had been lost. It didn’t help that whenever she would try and help with politics her mother would chastise her every contribution. As if reading her mind, her mother continued speaking.
“You’re too soft. I blame myself, but it cannot continue. You need to produce an heir to help stabilize things. There is political unrest and if we start fighting amongst each other then the human’s will seize any weakness. We are the last of our people. There are no second chances.” She moved towards Kara and put a hand on her shoulder. “I have faith in you that you will put aside childish notions and be what our people need.”
“Of course, Mother.” Kara didn’t quite meet her mother’s eyes, but managed to keep her voice level. She could do this.
“That is well.” She handed Kara a viewer. “Here is the information from the codex on the woman it paired you with. I don’t quite know its reasoning, but the program seems to think your genes will produce a good heir and we need that. There are whispers and dissention at this point could prove deadly—for all of us.”
Bright blue eyes scanned the file quickly. Her wife had been the owner of some of the human news sources. A television station, newspaper, and magazine were amongst the things she owned and it seemed like her company was expanding. She was quite successful before everything happened. Kara’s head cocked to the side as she got to one particular piece of information. “She has a child already. A son.”
Alura sighed deeply, “Unfortunately, yes. In less than two of Earth's lunar rotations he will have aged enough to go into care, however, so it is a trifling concern.”
Four Earth months old, Kara calculated. Infants could be placed into care at 6 months if their parents had jobs that made it difficult for the child to be cared for. He would have been conceived just before their arrival. “Isn’t this all a little fast? I mean…” She wet her lips trying to think of something to cover with. “It’s not healthy for the babies if the mother has them so close together…”
“You know the treatment our scientists devised so that the humans would be more compatible improves their health and healing. She’s quite healthy, having been examined and treated.” Alura put a hand on Kara’s back and started guiding her out. “The servants will prepare you for your wedding night. Remember to enjoy yourself. Though not acted upon for centuries, Kryptonians can enjoy women as well as men.”
Kara felt faintly nauseated as she let herself be led out and taken to her new home. It wasn’t that she didn’t like women. If she was being honest with herself ,she liked them far better than she enjoyed the company of men. This wasn’t how she wanted things to be. If she wasn’t to get love, then she had at least wanted them to be partners. The level of hatred in Cat’s stare combined with the fact that humans wouldn’t make good partners for Kryptonians in general made that impossible.
Alura stopped at the exit to the building and two robotic servants flanked them. She pulled Kara into an embrace. “You look beautiful today. Your father would be proud of you for this. I love you, Kara.” Kara held her mother back fiercely, but the rare moment was over quickly as Alura pulled away and put her judicial mask back in place. “We’ll speak soon.”
When she arrived in the apartment she was ushered into the dressing room. Her wedding garments were exchanged for a thin robe and she blushed as the robotic servants strapped her into the device that would allow her to bear children with her new wife. She had been told that human women enjoyed this activity quite a bit and that was why they exposed so much of themselves in their dress. Videos were shown of humans dancing very provocatively to music and singing about being excited by whips and chains and all manner of lewd acts. It was very different from Krypton to be so sexually open. She hoped that it was true and they could do this and be done with it. As much as her new bride was beautiful, her wife’s glares during the ceremony gave her a sense of malaise that made her not want to let her eyes linger too much.
She dismissed the robots and took a deep breath before heading into the the apartment to look for her wife. The living area was quiet and she headed into the bedroom, assuming that was where Cat had been left. She blinked a few times to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating as she took in the image of her wife with her hands cuffed to the top of the bed and nothing but a sheer sheet covering her from the waist down displaying a lithe. Apparently ‘preparing her wife’ was more of a tying her to the bed thing than a helping her into a robe thing. “Oh Rao…”
“Finally come to rape your new wife?” The woman sneered and looked her over, noticing the bulge and sighing. “I suppose that’s some sort of alien turkey baster, right? My new role as brood mare was explained, though lacking in critical details apparently.” She pulled on the cuffs once before turning her head away from Kara and staring out the window. “Just get on with it and leave me alone. Use some sort of lubrication as I want to be able to walk tomorrow.”
“I...this…” Words failed her completely as she sputtered. Her mother's words fell into place. The older woman knew that this was how it was going to be. It wasn’t meant to be a marriage even in the vague sense or she would have been left unbound. Kara’s feet felt like lead, but she took a step closer. She didn’t see how she had much of a choice in what came next.
Kara’s skin felt cold as the moment seemed to slow down. Her heart began to beat in her ears and her stomach flipped. Two more steps to the bed. She could make them, but her feet wouldn’t budge. All she had to do was reach the bed, spend a few minutes and then it would be done. Hardly any time at all. There was a soft wailing sound that seemed out of sync with the scene in front of her somehow. Cat’s head turned back to look at the door out of the room, pulling at her hands again in frustration.”He needs…”
“I’ve got it.” Kara saw the chance to delay things and took it. She unhooked the harness from herself and was out of the room in the blink of an eye using her superspeed. She checked the nursery first. The apartment had been set up with one, so she assumed that was where the child would be.
The nursery was empty and the cries were heard a few doors down. Her eyebrows furrowed as she pulled the door open. She was sure that was just a small storage closet. She wasn’t wrong. The closet was just large enough to fit one of the cages that the humans used for their offspring. There were a few human baby products on the shelves. It was a confusing mismatch of objects. Whoever had picked them out didn’t have much idea what was used for children or what they might need. It was also possible that they just care enough to make sure.
Kara turned her attention to the little boy instead of what had been left for him. Her enhanced sense of smell could tell something had gone very wrong even before she picked the boy up, holding him at a distance. She remembered at the last moment to speak in english as it would be more soothing than foreign words. “There there now, Little One. We’ll get you cleaned up.”
She walked him into the bathroom with the boy held at arm’s length, carefully activating the door control so she wouldn’t drop him. She had spent time volunteering with the war orphans. Kryptonians were so blood based in their family ties that it was hard to find new homes for them. Kara liked spending time looking after them and they seemed to like having someone to smile and hug them.
This little one, on the other hand, was quite upset. Kara didn’t think there would be any way to salvage the one piece outfit that he’d been put in. There were stains on the front even before taking into account the blowout in the rear. She started the bath on infant mode and tore the garment from him. “There you go. Now we’ll get the...puffy white thing off.” She tore that away and discarded it as well. “And you’re free.” The tub had moved to create a smaller tub in the center and it was filled with warm water. Kara placed Carter into the baby bath and began to wash him with the familiar kryptonian soaps.
She did her best to translate a baby song about the importance of cleanliness as she worked, but it lost a lot in translation. The little boy wasn’t too interested in it as he kicked and cried. It took a few minutes to get him wash up, but she was finally confident that he was clean. She picked him back up and wrapped him in a soft towel that could hold many times it own weight in water. “No more wetness of either variety, Carter. I’m sure that’s much better.” His cries stopped for a moment and he looked up at her with bright blue eyes. Her breath caught. He looked so much like Kal had at that age...like she had looked according to the holograms of her from that time.
It was a short reprieve before Carter began to cry again. “I’m sure you’re hungry, aren’t you?” She took the continued crying as a yes. Going back to the closet yielded a tub of powder that smelled...off...to her. Instead of following the instructions, she went into the nursery set up for her child and grabbed a bottle, filling it from a vacupack. She turned a bit too close to the lumir decoration and sent it to the ground. She tried to catch it with her foot but wound up kicking it into the edge of the door and shattering it with a loud crash. She still wasn’t 100% comfortable with her strength even a year out. Maybe she’d replace the six legged blue creature with a giraffe or something her child could actually go and see.
Carter looked up at her confused with the noise and she took the opportunity to give him the bottle. Human infants had the same dietary needs as Kryptonian. It wasn’t until they got a bit older that powers would begin to manifest that they’d need more to eat.
She sat down in an anti-grav chair in the corner for a moment as the boy ate, still wrapped in the towel. “You are a cute one, aren’t you?” Carter continued to eat. “I didn’t introduce myself, did I? I’m Kara. And I...well...your mother and I...” She tapered off.
Carter’s mother was currently still tied to their marital bed. She looked out the big window over the city. The spires rose high into the sky with little lights filled with people going about their lives just like she was. Except their lives were unlike hers in this moment. Everything hadn’t just been changed for them.
Before her father died, her mother had been so...normal. Even if she was not quite as warm as her Aunt Astra, there were times when her mother would hug her and tell her that she loved her. She would say how she was proud of her and her kind heart. Her mother used to stand for justice and now…now she was depriving humans of any sort of choice of their lives. They couldn’t choose where they worked. Some of them couldn’t even choose who they mated with and if they wanted kids. Diplomacy was dead and Kara wasn’t sure what that meant.
However strange it was for her, she knew it had to be terrible for her wife. Catherine Grant had been an important person on this planet. Her son had been planned and wanted. She was sure being shoved in a closet wasn’t the life that that the woman had wanted for him. Kara was even more sure that being the forced wife of an alien being was not on the woman’s agenda.
She was pulled from her thoughts by Carter letting the tip of the bottle fall from his mouth. She set the bottle aside and put him up on her shoulder, patting his back gently. “There you go. That’s a lot better now, huh?” He burped in response and Kara chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
She scanned the room and managed to locate something to put the boy in. The Kryptonian infant underthings would keep him dry and would get rid of anything else on contact, at least for about a day anyways and then they’d need reset. The only clothes in the room were one piece suits with the house of El crest. She dressed Carter in one of him and he looked for all the world like Kal El had before he’d been sent away. It seemed their city had more luck than his pod as there had been no sign of him.
Kara stroked Carter's hair and hugged him close, breathing him in. He was supposed to be sent away in a few weeks so she shouldn’t get attached. Kara frowned at the thought and held him closer. It wasn’t that he was really hers, even if he looked it in that outfit. What was getting to her was how small he was and how much he would need looking after. She smiled at him and he mirrored her for a moment.
She tucked him into her and sang again softly, in her own language this time. Her mother and her aunt had the most beautiful voices and she tried to do justice to the song they used to sing to her. She wasn’t sure if she succeeded, but Carter liked it better than her last attempt. He drifted off to sleep full and happy. She put him down on the floor bed on his back so he could look around the room. It was painted a reddish orange to simulate Rao’s light. It wasn’t the same but the sleeping child didn’t seem to mind. She grabbed a monitor and turned on it’s counterpart, taking it back with her.
Kara debated for a moment if she could just not go back in tonight and take refuge on the sofa, but that would be incredibly cruel considering her wife couldn’t actually leave the bed. Rao. When had it come to this?
She took a deep breath before walking into the bedroom, “I apologize...that took longer than…” She stopped as she came into the room. Cat had her face turned into one of the pillows and was sobbing. Her wrists were bleeding from pulling at the restraints. Before Kara could ask what had happened, Cat turned to look at her with a wild look of hatred spread across her face.
“What did you do to my son? Is he even still alive? I could have quieted him. You didn’t have to hurt him!”
“I didn’t hurt him! I don’t know why you’d think I’d…Oh...There was a loud boom and then the baby stopped crying…” She shook her head, “Hey...no…” Kara moved forward and looked around the nightstand until she found the key and released the woman. “He’s fine. I just knocked something ov—”
She couldn’t finish before Cat was moving past her. Kara averted her eyes before grabbing an extra robe and following after the nude woman. She watched as Cat looked in the little closet room before rounding on her.
“Where is my son?!” Cat moved into Kara’s space and while part of her knew the woman couldn’t do anything to her, she felt strangely intimidated.
Kara quickly hit the panel to open the door to the nursery, “He’s in there.”
Cat rushed forward, breathing a deep sigh of relief when she saw Carter sleeping peacefully. She bent down and pulled him into her arms cuddling him against her chest and rubbing his back. “It’s alright, my precious boy. Mommy’s here.” Her voice changed when she spoke to the boy. It was much softer and Kara wanted to hear it again. Carter stirred for a moment before settling comfortably against his mother. Cat’s tears started falling fast again.
Kara stood off to the side and tried to keep her eyes off of her wife’s body. None of this felt real to her. She felt like she was living pages out of an adventure book that her aunt would bring her back when she went off world. The values were skewed and nothing quite made sense. She noticed Cat shiver out of the corner of her eyes. “If you’re cold.” She set the robe down on the chair and walked back to the doorway.
If Cat had been aware of her nudity before then, she hadn’t shown it. The woman blinked a few times and put the robe on, covering herself. She eyed Kara up and down, her head cocked slightly in confusion. Her body looked tight with anticipation as though Kara were about to descend on her.
Kara wet her lips, “He...he hadn’t been changed in a while and it had gone up his back so I gave him a bath. His little outfit was gross and ripped taking it off of him so I put him in that. It uh...fit him well. I thought…” Cat was staring at her, so she kept continued and spoke a bit faster, “He was hungry after the bath. I mean. It seemed like he was and he drank a full bottle. I used Kryptonian food as the human food smelled off somehow. I don’t know. He seemed to like it and then he went to sleep after his lullaby. I thought he’d be more comfortable in here because his brain would get stimulated by the mirror and the window and toys and things on top of the fact the infant cage was still soiled and who keeps a baby in a closet?.” She ran her fingers through her hair. The woman wouldn’t stop looking at her silently. “I’ll, um, give you two some time.” Kara turned and went to sit on a sofa in the living room thinking that could have gone better.
—————————————————
Cat felt her shoulders relax as her ‘wife’ left the room. In her mind, she’d never said yes so it couldn’t really count. It was some sort of perverse alien colonialism where she was cast in the role of young native girl taken by the conquerors. Even with the fact she was a damned American citizen or had been since the country had been dissolved along with the rest of them, she was too damn old for this. Thirty-seven was supposed to be the age where people would leave you alone and let you terrorize your employees and raise your son in peace. That had been what she’d hoped for anyways. She breathed her son in, feeling his chest rise and fall. He was healthy and he was hers, but for how much longer she wasn’t sure.
She moved back to the chair and sat down in it, rocking her son back and forth. He was so incredibly perfect. She planned for him and imagined what he’d be like. He was more than she hoped, even though the circumstances changed wildly from the time she decided to start trying and the time that he’d been born. She couldn’t have planned for this.
If Russia hadn’t led that attack...or if the Kryptonians hadn’t come down so harsh after then maybe things could have worked out. It didn’t do to dwell on things that could have been so she forced it out of her mind and tried to come up with a plan to get out of this. Her attempt to escape after the aliens came for her hadn’t been successful and they’d threatened to take Carter into ‘care’ early if she tried again. He wasn’t a sickly baby, but he was sensitive. She didn’t think he would survive being one in a sea of children in little cots. She’d done a report on Romanian orphanages back in the 90s. It was incredibly grim and the thought of that happening to Carter was more terrifying to her than anything that could have happened to her back in the bedroom—not that she wasn’t frightened of that as well. She was terrified and torn between putting it off and getting it over as soon as possible.
Cat leaned down and kissed the crown of Carter’s head and turned to face the window. Her ‘wife’ was strange for an alien. Kara Zor-El seemed a bit hesitant to violate her compared to the doctors that had examined her or the guards who smirked as they tied her to the bed. It was common knowledge that the Kryptonians thought of humans as some sort of deviant primitive beings. Their lives weren’t worth much if anything.
She looked down at Carter. While leaving her tied up was horrific, it did seem as though Kara took somewhat competent care of her son. He wasn’t fussing like he had been after the off-brand formula hurt his stomach and his clothes were soft and clean.
Cat sighed. She needed to go back out there and face whatever would happen next. Kara had dressed Carter in her house’s symbol, so maybe there was a chance that she could get the girl attached to him in some way. Maybe she could even get the Kryptonian attached to her. There would be some protection in that as repulsive as it was. She was still Cat Grant and that meant getting people to do what she wanted. If her alien bride wasn’t some sort of princess or something she would stand a chance at making a run for it and reaching the resistance, but there was security everywhere. She would be found and Carter would be hurt or killed if she tried it
She stood up and kissed Carter’s forehead. “I will do anything I can to protect you, Sweetheart. I promise you that.” She laid him down on the bed. It was something out of a Montessori nursery—the entire room was. It was a big leap from the closet and an even bigger leap from what the Kryptonians called ‘Care Centers’. Frankly, it was similar to what she had started getting set up in his nursery at home before the building was destroyed. She could do what she had to so he could keep it and the first step to that was trying to play nice with alien barbie.
Cat forced her chest to expand in deep breaths, trying to keep from shaking. She reminded herself to keep walking and that she could and would do anything for her son. The alien needed her alive. She would survive this.
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she almost missed the blonde woman sitting on the sofa and gasped when she realized Kara was sitting so close to where she was walking. “I assumed you’d be in the bedroom. You startled me.”
“I didn’t mean to frighten you.” She folded her hands in her lap. “Not before with Carter either.”
“I...he seemed well cared for.” Cat lowered herself into a chair as far as she could get from Kara and still be in the same living area. “He hasn’t been sleeping as well. I think the food they were giving him irritated his stomach.” She hadn’t been able to produce much milk, another way her failures as a mother were affecting Carter.
“It didn’t smell nice.” Kara looked up as though she was examining the ceiling. “I can show you how to use the dispenser for him.”
“I would like that.” She’d hate it, but she wanted to know how to get Carter his bottles. “Thank you.” The words tasted like ash in her mouth.
Kara looked down at her with a tiny hopeful smile, “It’s fine. He’s a sweet boy.” After a second her gaze lowered to where Cat was gripping the arms of the chair. “Do you uh...want me to help with your wrists? I grabbed the medical kit.”
Cat looked down. She had hardly noticed the way she’d cut her wrists against the restraints trying to get to Carter. “They’re fine.” She waved a hand, noticing the pain now that the injury had been pointed out to her.
“Are you sure? I...it wouldn’t hurt.” She shifted closer.
“Alright.” She didn’t want the alien’s hands on her, but she realized that getting the younger woman in the habit of caring for her would only help her goals. She held out her hands and tried to force her heart to slow down. It was possible that the Kryptonian could hear it.
It was surprising how gently and efficiently she was tended. Kara’s hands were warm as she applied some sort of cream and then ran a device over her skin. The bruises faded before her eyes and Kara lifted her hands to examine her work carefully before setting them down, “There you go. That should feel a bit better.”
“It does.” She drew her hands back and rubbed the places where the injuries used to be. “Do you have some medical training?”
“I uh, helped to treat soldiers during the war for a while. My mother put a stop to it after one battle where I went closer to the front lines than I was supposed to and caught a bullet to the shoulder pulling someone out. Wound up being one of yours.” She shrugged.
“Ah. They probably weren’t happy about that.” Cat played with her fingers, fidgeting in the chair.
“They really weren’t. My aunt went to bat for me, but my mother usually wins when it comes to things like that. I helped with the war orphans after that. As a volunteer job. I’m a member of the science guild, but I favor the artist guild.” She shifted in her seat.
The air was sharp in between them, and Cat held herself rigidly. “Ah...that would explain how you knew what to do for Carter.”
“Yeah. It um...wasn’t really different from the Kryptonian kids.” The alien picked at invisible lint on her robe.
“I imagine it wasn’t.” Kara liking kids in general would be helpful. Cat kept quiet as she didn’t want to tip her hand or move forward too fast.
Kara didn’t say anything else, but Cat watched as Kara clenched and unclenched her jaw looking like she was going to speak and then closing her mouth tightly. Her stomach dropped. The Kryptonian was wrestling with something and Cat would wager that it had everything to do with her. She didn’t want to wait and see what conclusion the girl would draw on her own.
“You don’t have to do it, you know. Hurt me.” She made a quick calculation to appeal to the girl’s nobility. “You don’t want to be a rapist. I can see it in your eyes. You’re kinder than that.” She didn’t quite believe what she was saying, but she spoke with conviction.
Kara slumped in her seat, “I…it wouldn’t be like this in a Kryptonian marriage. Even if you don’t care as much for each other, it’s not about you or love...it’s about serving your people and making a stronger next generation.”
“That sounds awful.” She tried to draw more out of the woman by voicing the unspoken sentiment. She needed more information.
Kara drew her legs up underneath of herself. “It wasn’t awful. I...my uncle defied tradition and met with his bride first to make sure he liked her. They fell deeply in love. My parents loved each other as well. I...thought I might be lucky in that regard as well, as childish as that is.”
“It’s not childish to want to love the person you’re married to. It’s the standard on our world. Marriage is a declaration of love in front of your family and friends.” She worked to let an idea build in Kara’s mind. She wondered if it might be easier to let the blonde have at her than to fake affection for her down the line, but this would be safer for Carter if she could play her cards right.
“I remember reading about that. You exchange rings rather than bracelets.” She played with the band around her wrist.
“Yes we do.” She was quiet for a moment giving Kara a chance to fill the silence.
“I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to do that to you. I…” Kara released a breath. “It’s wrong, but it’s a big political thing and my mother is always so disappointed in me…”
“I know a thing or two about that. My mother has never thought I did enough. In the end you have to carve out your own way so that you can live with yourself.” Cat swallowed. This wasn’t an offer that she wanted to make, but Kara’s nobility would only last so long in the face of that much pressure. “You can chose what you want your marriage to look like. You can take your time and find something softer.” Cat could fake it well enough. Playing at happy families was a skill she honed growing up with her parents. It was all about perception as long as she kept her feelings hidden.
Kara’s eyes shone with hope, “Really? I mean...even after...”
“Nothing happened.” She knew it was more because of her son rather than any restraint on Kara’s part, but she’d let Kara think she excused her actions. It would give her a chance to behave differently.
“I...you don’t seem like I was told you’d be.”
“I was building a media empire, you have to be smart for that. Capable.” Her voice took on an edge, but she couldn’t help herself. Kryptonians were so self aggrandizing. She fought down a yawn.
“You should get some sleep. Humans require eight hours a day.” She recited it as if it were some sort of interesting animal fact.
“We do.” She hadn’t gotten that much since she was a child, but sleep meant she wouldn’t be hurt for now. She’d have more time to push Kara towards something different.
Kara stood up. “Do you...they might look in on us. We’ll have to share a sleeping space.”
“Alright.” There went her chance of sleeping for the night, but she stood and went toward the bedroom all the same. “What am I expected to wear?”
Kara handed her a sleeping gown with the same ‘S’ that everything else had. Cat went towards the bathroom and changed in there as she used the facilities. When she got out Kara had already changed and was in bed facing away from Cat. The restraints were removed and a box was on the nightstand that showed Carter while he slept. Cat took the other side of the bed and stared out the window, settling in for a long night and reminding herself to take things one day at a time.